2 Corinthians 2:17-18 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
Four days ago was the 17 year anniversary of my mother’s death. I don’t celebrate that with sadness. I know she is in heaven, and I rejoice in that. But I do miss her for sure! This time of year always make me reflect a little more on life and death. I’m not sure why my mama had to leave at such a young age of 59, but God does. People tell me frequently that I’m one of the toughest people they know. No matter how tough I am or how strong I get, I’ll never be tough enough! Farming is the hardest job I’ll ever have! I’m up at 5:00 am and to bed by 10:00 most days while working around here and at the clinic in between, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. A few years ago in April, we were rejoicing in new life as Merida, my sweet Scottish Highland cow, gave birth to our first long awaited little Scottish Highland calf. I had been talking to that mama for months, rubbing her belly, and I was all up in the middle of her Koolaid when that baby was being born. She delivered a beautiful deep auburn colored heifer calf, one of the prettiest calves I had ever seen. It truly could not have been a prettier baby. The next morning, I awoke with great anticipation. I couldn’t wait to get out to the field to check on her and get acquainted. But to my great dismay, when I arrived at her side, I found a very sick calf. Her breathing was raspy. She had fluid in her lungs. She had apparently aspirated during the delivery, and she didn’t make it. I was heart broken to say the least. I don’t know why I had to lose that beautiful little calf that I had been anxiously awaiting for over nine months, but God does. God also knew I needed a twenty minute drive to work so that I could cry some cleansing tears all the way to work that day, and then He must’ve thought I needed to keep my mind busy too because he sent nearly sixty patients for me to see that day. Yes, my God takes care of every detail.
I hear of accidents occurring daily. I hear of many who are sick, loved ones who have passed away, suicides, tragedies, and I still can’t help but wonder why? Although I wonder, I find that the answer is always the same. I don’t know why, but God does. His plans are bigger than our plans, and His ways are greater than our ways. When things don’t seem to go our way, we need not fear and fret. It is in those times that our loving Father wants us to cling to Him even more tightly. Don’t you just love those God hugs? Whenever I lose a critter here on the farm or when I have had an especially tough day at the clinic, I can’t wait to see my husband. I fall into him, and he wraps those big strong arms around me and gives me a great big hug. All the worries of the day just melt away. God hugs are just like that. We may not physically feel those arms around us, but when we take our troubles to the foot of the cross, He wraps us up with all of His strength, grace, and mercy, and our hearts and minds feel an overwhelming sense of peace. All the worries of the day just melt away. That is a God hug, y’all!
We may never understand the why…why we lose the ones we love, why we suffer, or why life doesn’t go as planned, but God does. We do not have to be strong enough to handle all of the troubles that come our way. We must only be strong enough to place our trust in Him. It only takes a little faith. Scripture tells us that we only need faith the size of a mustard seed, and that’s a good thing, because mustard seed sized faith is sometimes all I have, but that little seed of faith grows bigger and stronger with every single day spent with my Savior. We must remember our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. Fix your eyes not on your troubles but rather on the Savior today!
Inspirations from the Funny Farm 